Dink, Josh and Ruth Rose investigate the kidnapping of the baby panda at the zoo.

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This story was of a children’s mystery to find a baby panda that was stolen from the local zoo. The central message is to work hard in what you believe in. The children did not give up on finding the baby panda until they found him. They did so even in the face of danger. I believe there was also a second central message portrayed at the end of the story. This message was about the importance of giving others a second chance even when they mess up. These messages were portrayed through the key details of the text such as the feelings and actions of the main characters throughout the story. The main message was also displayed through the dialogue at the end of the story. The characters each showed compassion and understood that people make mistakes. They were willing to forgive the culprit and find ways for him to better himself. The children were determined and worked hard to solve the mystery and save the baby panda. ( )

*spoilers*

This is a fairly good book about a baby panda that gets stolen right before the opening of the new panda exhibit. Three friends try to solve the mystery before midnight, which is when the ransom note said a million dollars was due. The children do a fairly good job of asking the three suspects questions, but are still trying to figure things out when the real culprit traps them in a coal room below the fitness gym. It's the same place that the panda-napper kept the baby panda, Winnie, so when the kids figure out how to get out and one of them goes to the police, they are able to get the panda back to the exhibit and the culprit was caught. I thought it was a fairly predictable book, I knew who the culprit was long before he trapped them, but I liked the writing. ( )

I liked this book for two reasons. The first reason is that the point of view that the story was told in allowed for a reader to read the story from an unbiased and outside perspective because it was told in the third person. By telling the story in third person, the narrator allows the audience to see the whole picture and can share the feelings that every character has throughout various events in the story. For example, the author writes, "Pal sighed and flopped down. His big brown eyes watched Josh, Dink, and Ruth Rose enter the building" (p. 39). Because the story was told in third person, the narrator can describe how Pal reacted without bias. If the story was told in first person, the narrator may have a different opinion or description of the other characters. However, the third person point of view in this book makes the book more detailed in the descriptions of events and other characters. I also like the language in this book. The language was descriptive so that the audience has a clear image in their mind of the story. The author appeals to multiple senses as he writes, "Soft guitar music greeted them at an open door. Tom Steele was sitting at a computer with his back to the kids. A small radio sat on the desk" (p. 32). This descriptive language provides a detailed image of the scene that is taking place. The author describes the sounds heard and small details about what is on the desk so that the audience can easily envision this in their minds. Overall, the big idea in this story is about justice and fighting what is wrong. ( )